According to a joint statement from the two nations and the US Department of State, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have signed a provisional agreement aimed at bringing an end to the conflict in eastern DRC.
Following “three days of constructive dialogue regarding political, security, and economic interests,” the statement said, the development occurred late on Wednesday in Washington, DC.
Disarmament, non-state armed group integration, and the return of refugees and internally displaced people are among the issues that the draft agreement addresses.
Armed groups fighting for access to natural resources have been rife in Eastern DRC for decades. The largest city of Goma, the mineral-rich area’s largest city, was taken over by the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group in January. The group seized Bukavu, a strategic town, a few weeks later. Rwanda denies supporting the rebels.
Since the conflict started to escalate earlier this year, thousands of people have been killed in the area and hundreds of thousands have fled.
A number of conflict-related parties have been accused of violating human rights.
Amnesty International accused M23 of torturing and killing civilians in a report that was released in May.
According to Amnesty, “These acts may amount to war crimes because they violate international humanitarian law.”
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk claimed on Monday that rebels, DRC troops, and allies have all committed human rights violations.
Turk urged all parties to “commit to a ceasefire, resume negotiations, and respect international humanitarian and human rights law.”
The US hopes to put an end to the conflict and allow Western investors to invest billions of dollars in eastern DRC, which has large cobalt, copper, gold, and lithium reserves.
The “win-win” scenario, according to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, includes the two objectives of peace and investment.
US envoy to Africa, Massad Boulos, traveled to Rwanda and the DRC in April as part of the diplomatic mission. He urged Kigali to stop supporting the M23 rebels during his visit.
Since 2021, the African nations have reached at least six truces, but none have been lasting.
In March, Angola resigned from its mediatorship, and the US and Qatar are currently leading efforts to bring about peace in the eastern DRC.
As Israel and Iran carry out strikes against each other for a seventh straight day, the region is anxiously bracing for a potentially wider conflict. But question marks remain over the two sides’ ability to finance a sustained war effort.
On Friday, Israel killed several of Iran’s top military commanders and nuclear scientists and damaged some of its nuclear sites. It has since damaged parts of Iran’s fossil fuel sector. In response, Iran has launched missile attacks at government buildings and metropolitan areas in Israel.
As of Thursday, the Israeli attacks have killed 240 people while Iranian strikes have killed at least 24 people.
But the conflict is also costing both nations billions of dollars and could choke their economic growth and trigger concerns over long-term fiscal planning.
What are the costs of the war for Israel?
Israel’s prolonged military operations in Gaza since October 2023 and the recent escalation with Iran have plunged the country into the most expensive period of conflict in its history.
According to a January report by the Israeli business newspaper Calcalist, the cumulative cost of the Gaza war alone had reached 250 billion shekels ($67.5bn) by the end of 2024.
A June 15 report by the Israeli news outlet Ynet News, quoting a former financial adviser to the Israeli military’s chief of staff, estimated that the first two days of fighting with Iran alone cost Israel 5.5 billion shekels (roughly $1.45bn). At that rate, a prolonged conflict with Iran could see Israel surpass the end-2024 Gaza war expenses within seven weeks.
Even before the current escalation with Iran, Israel had dramatically increased its defence budget amid its multiple regional conflicts and the war on Gaza. From 60 billion shekels ($17bn) in 2023, it grew to 99 billion ($28bn) in 2024. Projections for 2025 suggest it could reach 118 billion shekels ($34bn).
The Ministry of Finance set a deficit ceiling of 4.9 percent of Israel’s gross domestic product (GDP) for this fiscal year, equating to 105 billion shekels ($27.6bn). Higher military spending would put that to the test.
How will the latest conflict impact Israel’s debt profile?
Despite a recent increase in projected tax revenues – from 517 billion to 539 billion shekels ($148bn to $154bn) – Israel’s 2025 growth forecast has been revised down from 4.3 to 3.6 percent.
According to the business survey company CofaceBDI, roughly 60,000 Israeli companies closed in 2024 due to manpower shortages, logistics disruptions and subdued business sentiment. In addition, tourist arrivals continue to fall short of pre-October 2023 levels.
Those trends could be aggravated in the event of a full-fledged war with Iran.
S&P Global Ratings issued a stark warning about the vulnerability of the Israeli economy on Tuesday.
The agency stated that a continued Israeli war campaign, particularly if met with a sustained and strategic Iranian response, could lead to a downgrade of Israel’s credit rating from A to A-. Were that to happen, it would likely raise borrowing costs and soften investor confidence in the Israeli economy.
How has Iran’s fossil fuel industry been impacted?
In recent days, Iran’s oil exports appear to have fallen dramatically. Total Iranian crude and condensate oil exports are forecast to reach 102,000 barrels per day (bpd) in the week ending on Sunday. That’s less than half the 242,000 bpd it was averaging in exports this year, according to data from the analytics firm Kpler.
Critically, exports from Kharg Island, from which Iran exports more than 90 percent of its oil, appear to have completely halted since Friday. No tankers were anchored at Kharg Island on Monday, according to LSEG satellite ship tracking data.
In 2025, Iran has produced an average of 3.4 million bpd of crude, according to the United States Energy Information Administration (EIA), with China appearing to be the main foreign buyer. Most of the oil Iran produces is for domestic consumption.
On Saturday, Iran partially suspended gas production at the South Pars gasfield in the Gulf after it was hit by Israeli missiles. South Pars, which Iran shares with Qatar, is the world’s biggest gasfield. It produces about 80 percent of Iran’s total gas output.
For now, the extent of the damage to the South Pars field is unknown. In addition, Israel has targeted the Shahr Rey refinery outside Tehran as well as fuel depots around the capital. The full impact of these strikes on production is unknown.
How do sanctions against Iran play a role?
Iran has faced economic sanctions from the US after the Islamic Revolution and the US embassy hostage crisis in 1979 and then over its nuclear programme.
In a bid to pressure Tehran to agree to a deal on its nuclear programme, the administration of then-US President Barack Obama coaxed multiple major economies around the world to cut down or stop their oil purchases from Iran, using a wave of additional sanctions.
Those sanctions were relaxed after Iran struck the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) deal in 2015 with the US, Russia, China, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the European Union.
The following year, Iran exported 2.8 million bpd of petroleum products.
But US President Donald Trump reimposed the sanctions in 2018 during his first term as president and added more, again pressuring most other nations to stop buying Iranian crude. The result, according to the EIA, was that Tehran generated only $50bn in oil export revenue in 2022 and 2023, which amounts to roughly 200,000 bpd of crude exports, less than 10 percent of 2016 levels.
The upshot is that sanctions have gutted Iran’s foreign exchange earnings.
Iran has staved off economic collapse in part thanks to China, the main buyer of its oil and one of the few nations still trading with Tehran.
Still, the loss of revenue because of the sanctions has deprived the country of long-term economic development and has hit Tehran’s ability to fix dilapidated infrastructure.
President Masoud Pezeshkian has repeatedly highlighted the severity of the economic situation facing the country, stating that Tehran’s situation is more challenging than during the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s.
In March, he openly criticised the latest round of US sanctions targeting tankers carrying Iranian oil.
What are Iran’s other challenges?
Iran also faces a string of other constraints – energy and water shortages, a collapsing currency and military setbacks among its regional allies – all amplified by the sanctions.
A lack of investment, declining natural gas production and inefficient irrigation are all leading to power blackouts and water shortages.
Meanwhile, the rial, Iran’s currency, has shed more than 90 percent of its value against the dollar since the sanctions were reimposed in 2018, according to foreign exchange websites.
And while the official inflation rate hovers around 40 percent, some Iranian experts said it is actually running at more than 50 percent. “Precise numbers are hard to come by,” said Hamzeh Al Gaaod, an economic analyst at TS Lombard, a political research firm.
“But what we can say is that years of sanctions have triggered inflationary pressure, including through devaluations of the rial. In turn, that makes goods imports from abroad more expensive,” Al Gaaod told Al Jazeera.
In January, the Tasnim news agency quoted the head of Iran’s Institute of Labor and Social Welfare, Ebrahim Sadeghifar, as saying 22 to 27 percent of Iranians were now below the poverty line.
Unemployment is running at 9.2 percent. However, Iran’s Supreme Assembly of Workers’ Representatives, which represents labour interests, estimated the true figure of people without access to subsistence-level work is far higher.
What can Iran spend?
According to Al Gaaod, Tehran has a “relatively small budget for military purposes”. He estimated that anywhere from 3 to 5 percent of Iran’s GDP is spent on defence, which amounts to roughly $12bn.
Tehran does have $33bn in foreign exchange reserves it could theoretically draw on. But Al Gaaod said: “This is where Iran is on the backfoot. To use reserves for short-term military conflict would cripple them over the longer term.”
According to the medical facility, an Iranian missile struck the main hospital in southern Israel, injuring people and causing “extensive damage.”
The large headquarters of the Israeli army’s Command and Intelligence (IDF C4I) and the military intelligence camp in the Gav-Yam Technology Park were the “main target” of the missile attack early on Thursday, according to IRNA, the Islamic Republic News Agency.
In Be’er Sheva, it was claimed that this facility is near Soroka Hospital.
IRNA claimed that the hospital’s shockwave from the missile attack only caused minor damage.
It stated that “the military infrastructure was a precise and direct target.”
Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, blasted the attack and promised a response, saying: “We will demand from Tehran the full price.
In at least two locations close to Tel Aviv, another missile struck a high-rise building and several other residential structures. According to Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue service, at least 47 people were hurt in the attacks.
In its most recent attack on Iran’s sprawling nuclear program, Israel carried out strikes on the country’s Arak heavy water reactor on the seventh day of a conflict that started with surprise airstrikes against military installations, senior officers, and nuclear scientists.
Israel’s military claimed that to prevent the Arak factory from producing plutonium, its fighter jets targeted the reactor core seal.
Israel also asserted that it struck a second site in Natanz that it said was connected to Iran’s nuclear program.
The attack on the Arak site posed “no radiation danger whatsoever,” according to Iranian state TV.
The United States National Hurricane Center (NHC) has announced that Hurricane Erick has advanced to an “extremely dangerous” Category 4 storm just before it is expected to scuttle Mexico’s Pacific coastline.
The meteorological center’s most recent bulletin indicated that Erick might gain even more strength before making landfall on Thursday morning in Guerrero and Oaxaca, both in the eastern region of the state.
Forecasters have predicted that the major storm will cause destructive winds, flash floods, and a risky storm surge as it moves northwest at a rate of 15 kilometers per hour (nine mph).
The hurricane’s maximum sustained winds increased to 230 km/h (145 mph), according to the NHC, putting it within the Category 4 wind speed range of 208 to 251 km/h (130 to 156 mph).
Before Hurricane Erick arrives in Acapulco, boats are taken out of the water. [Fernando Llano/AP Photo]
The NHC warned that Erick could cause “life-threatening flooding and mudslides, especially in areas of steep terrain,” bringing up to 16 inches (40 cm) of rain in Oaxaca and Guerrero.
Up to 6 inches of rain could fall on the Mexican states of Chiapas, Michoacan, Colima, and Jalisco, according to the Miami-based center.
As it moves closer to the Oaxacan resort city of Puerto Escondido, Erick’s projected path was changed late on Wednesday. The entire coastal region between Acapulco and Puerto Angel is under a hurricane warning.
Before Erick’s arrival, Mexican authorities have scrambled to get the population and tourists ready. President Claudia Sheinbaum urged people to stay at home or relocate to shelters if they were in low-lying areas in a video message on Wednesday night.
In Chiapas, Guerrero, and Oaxaca, there are about 2, 000 temporary housing units that can accommodate those who have to leave their homes.
Meanwhile, Guerrero Governor Evelyn Salgado announced that fishing and tourism companies had been instructed to prepare their boats for storms and that all of her state’s schools would remain closed.
On June 18, 2025, a man in Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca state, Mexico, ties a sandbag.
Acapulco, a resort resort in Guerrero, was one of the places where people prepared for Erick’s landing.
Hurricane Otis, which killed at least 52 people and destroyed many homes and businesses in the city of almost one million people, devastated the city in October 2023.
In the 2023 hurricane, Carlos Ozuna Romero, 51, lost his restaurant on the sand dunes of Acapulco. He watched workers prepare for the new storm on Wednesday by preparing tables and chairs.
He said, “Authorities’ warnings fill us with fear and obviously make us remember everything we’ve already been through.”
Another 40-year-old employee at the city, Veronica Gomez, suggested the city was much better prepared this time around. She said, “Now it won’t catch us by surprise.”
According to the NHC, Erick is likely to gradually deteriorate as it travels to the mountains, and it will likely vanish.
[Henry Romero/Reuters] People are boarding windows at a business in Acapulco.
As Israel and Iran exchange fire for the seventh day in a row, a new wave of Iranian missiles have struck several locations across Israel, causing a hospital to be damaged, and Israel has attacked the country’s heavy water nuclear reactor Arak.
After an Iranian missile struck the southern Israeli city of Beersheba on Thursday, rescue operations were underway. In the attack, Iran claimed to be aiming for a military base.
According to reports, the Iranian missiles were fired on at least six other locations, including in Holon and Ramat Gan, two of Tel Aviv’s districts. At least 50 people were hurt, according to emergency personnel, including four who were in critical condition.
According to the Israeli army, its fighter jets bombed Iran’s Arak heavy water nuclear reactor and numerous other sites.
The partially finished reactor was originally known as Arak and is now known as Khondab.
The military specifically targeted “the core seal’s structure,” a crucial component of plutonium production, in a statement from the military.
Two projectiles struck a nearby area of the Khondab nuclear facility, according to Iranian media reports.
Before the strikes, there was no risk of radiation or casualties, according to officials who spoke to Iranian state TV. No damage was made known.
The two nations exchanged fire for a seventh day following Israel’s major attack on Iranian military installations and nuclear sites, which resulted in the deaths of senior military officials and top nuclear scientists.
Iran launched airstrikes against Israel in response to that attack, and the conflict has since expanded to include civilian targets, including homes and oil and gas facilities.
Israel’s multiple-tiered air defenses have fired hundreds of missiles and drones at Iran, but the majority of them have been shot down by the country’s multiple missile defenses.
a significant hospital
The emergency room at the hospital, which has more than 1, 000 beds and serves the roughly 1 million residents of southern Israel, said in a statement that there was “extensive damage” in several areas of the facility and that several minor injuries were being treated. Except for potentially fatal cases, all new patients were confined to the hospital.
In Israel, many hospitals have started emergency plans in the past week, switching hospital floors from underground parking and moving patients underground, especially those who are on ventilators or moving quickly.
Israeli Army Radio quoted Israeli Health Minister Uriel Buso as saying, “This is a war crime committed by the Iranian regime,” in reference to the Soroka attack. The Iranian government would “pay a high price” for the attack, according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
In Ramat Gan, Israel, an Iranian missile strike site is being inspected by rescue workers and military personnel.
The large headquarters of the Israeli army’s Command and Intelligence (IDF C4I) and the military intelligence base in the Gav-Yam Technology Park were the “main target” of the Beersheba attack, according to the Iranian news agency IRNA. According to the statement, the facility is next to the Soroka Medical Center, and it claims the missile strike’s shockwave only caused minor damage to the hospital.
Information about places like the military and intelligence facilities is not made available to the general public because of strict military censorship in Israel. A hospital’s building, which Israeli media reported, sustained significant damage in a building that was referred to as “sensitive.”
Israeli authorities were attempting to send a “message that the Iranians target hospitals,” according to Israeli political commentator Ori Goldberg, according to Al Jazeera.
Israelis, of course, also target hospitals. Because Israel places its military headquarters in the middle of residential neighborhoods and towns, he continued, adding from Tel Aviv, that there are actually very sensitive installations and headquarters very close to the hospital.
Meanwhile, Iranian state television reported the Arak site attack, claiming that there was “no radiation danger whatsoever.” The facility has been evacuated, according to an Iranian state television reporter who spoke live from the nearby town of Khondab. No harm has been done to civilian areas surrounding the reactor.
Israel had earlier issued a warning to the facility’s owners on Thursday morning and urged the public to leave. Without going into further detail, the Israeli military claimed that its most recent airstrikes also targeted Tehran and other Iranian regions.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei rejected American demands for a surrender and warned that any US military involvement in the conflict would “inflict irreparable harm to them” (iraqi law) one day prior to the strikes.
Donald Trump made a remarkable revelation in his first address to a joint session of Congress on March 4th, 2018, after taking office as US president for the second time.
He referred to the deadly Abbey Gate bombing at Kabul airport in August 2021 – which occurred as thousands of Afghans tried to flee following the Taliban takeover – and said the alleged perpetrator had been apprehended.
Pakistan, the nation he attributed the arrest to. “I want to thank especially the government of Pakistan for helping arrest this monster”, Trump declared.
For the first time in a US president’s tenure hosting a military chief from Pakistan who is not also the country’s head of state, Trump hosted Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir for lunch on Wednesday at the White House. Munir is on a five-day trip to the US.
This is a significant change for a nation that Trump had previously been accused of providing the US with “nothing but lies and deceit” and safe havens for terrorists and which his immediate predecessor Joe Biden referred to as “one of the most dangerous nations.”
It’s a reset that experts say has been in the making for weeks, under Trump’s second administration, and that was solidified by the brief but intense military confrontation between India and Pakistan in May, during which the US tried to mediate a ceasefire.
Some analysts warn that Trump’s changing relationship should be seen as a result of his personal style as opposed to institutional policy.
“We are dealing with an administration which changes its tune by the hour. The Middle East Institute (MEI) senior fellow Marvin Weinbaum told Al Jazeera, “There is no process here.”
“One minute the US has no interest, and the next minute priorities change rapidly. You don’t associate mercurial and personal administration with traditional US foreign policy, he continued.
However, others point out that even the optics of Trump hosting Munir are significant.
Raza Ahmad Rumi, a distinguished lecturer at City University of New York (CUNY), said, “Trump’s lunch invitation to Pakistan’s army chief isn’t just protocol-breaking; it’s protocol-redefining.” “It signals, quite visibly, that Pakistan is not just on Washington’s radar, it’s in the inner circle, at least for now”.
Resets are made in the wake of regional crises.
The meeting between Trump and Munir came amid heightened tensions in the Middle East, where Israel has been conducting strikes inside Iranian cities since June 13. Israel has been the target of Iranian missile attacks in response.
The Israeli offensive – targeting Iranian generals, missile bases, nuclear facilities and scientists – has killed more than 200 people. About 20 people have been killed in the past six days as a result of Iran’s missile and drone attacks on Israel.
The Benjamin Netanyahu-led Israeli government has been urging the US to join the offensive against Iran, which shares a 900-kilometre-long (559-mile) border with Pakistan.
After meeting with Munir on Wednesday, Trump addressed the media in the Oval Office, saying that Pakistanis “know Iran very well, better than most people,” but that they are “not happy.”
According to Trump, however, the main reason for meeting Munir was to thank him for his role in defusing the May conflict between Pakistan and India, a confrontation that brought the region, home to more than 1.6 billion people, to the brink of nuclear war.
“I wanted to thank him for avoiding the war]with India, so I had him here.” And I want to thank PM]Narendra] Modi as well, who just left a few days ago. Trump, who is credited with having a close relationship with Indian leader Modi, said, “We’re working on a trade deal with India and Pakistan.”
“These two very smart people decided not to keep going with a war that could have been a nuclear war. Two significant nuclear powers, Pakistan and India. I was honoured to meet him today”, he added, referring to Munir.
26 Indian civilians were killed in an April attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, which had sparked the crisis. India blamed Pakistan, which denied the charge and called for a “credible, independent, transparent” investigation.
India launched strikes on Pakistani and Pakistan-administered Kashmir territories on May 7. Pakistan responded via its air force, claiming to have downed at least six Indian jets. India confirmed losses, but they did not provide specific figures.
The conflict escalated as both sides exchanged drones for three days and eventually launched missiles at military targets on May 10. A ceasefire was only achieved after a lot of backchannel diplomacy, especially one involving the US, was engaged in.
Trump reiterated his role on Wednesday. I ended Pakistan’s and India’s conflict. This man]Munir] was extremely influential in stopping it from the Pakistan side, Modi from the India side, and others”, he said.
India claims the ceasefire was the result of bilateral dialogue, despite Pakistan’s acknowledgment of US involvement. Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri stated on Tuesday that Indian PM Modi had spoken to Trump by phone to underscore New Delhi’s view that there was no US-led mediation between India and Pakistan.
US President Donald Trump spoke to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi via phone hours before meeting with the chief of the Pakistani army, Asim Munir.
Arif Ansar, chief strategist at Washington-based advisory firm PoliTact, said Pakistan’s military performance during the confrontation prompted Trump’s engagement.
According to Ansar, “it demonstrated that the country can outmanoeuvre a much bigger adversary” despite its political and economic difficulties. “This has led President Trump to engage with Pakistan’s traditional power centres based on core strategic interests”.
Opportunity to assert relevance
That engagement has a long history.
Pakistan’s relationship with the US dates back to 1947, when it merged with Washington in the Cold War. After the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Pakistan supported US objectives there, and the two collaborated closely to support the mujahideen that eventually forced Moscow to pull out its troops.
Pakistan later backed the US “war on terror” that followed 9/11.
However, over the years, many within the US strategic community also started questioning Pakistan’s credibility as a reliable security partner, especially after 9/11 architect Osama bin Laden was found in Abbottabad, close to Rawalpindi, home to Pakistan’s military headquarters in 2011.
The strategic partnership has slowed even further since the Taliban’s resurrected in August 2021. Pakistan has increasingly turned towards China for economic, military and technological support.
However, according to Weinbaum, Pakistan has received a level of respect that the previous Biden administration did not.
Trump wanted “counterterrorism assistance”, Weinbaum said – and seemingly got it.
General Michael E. Kurilla, the US Central Command’s (CENTCOM) chief, detailed how that cooperation led to the capture of the alleged Abbey Gate bomber on June 10.
“They]Pakistan] are in an active counterterrorism fight right now, and they have been a phenomenal partner in the counterterrorism world”, Kurilla said, in a testimony before the House Armed Services Committee in Washington, DC.
This progress, including the arrest of the Abbey Gate bombing suspect, was made possible thanks to direct coordination with Pakistan’s army chief, according to Kurilla, who also oversees the US military’s Middle East operations, including Iran. “Field Marshal Asim Munir called me to tell me they had captured one of the Daesh-K]ISKP or ISIS-K] individuals”, he said.
According to Weinbaum, Pakistan has added “more goodies,” such as a trade deal without tariffs, an offer for rare earth minerals, and crypto, as the cherry on top of the bilateral relationship. Weinbaum previously served as an analyst for Pakistan and Afghanistan in the US State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research.
Pakistan’s assets are currently being offered to foreign investors, including the US and Saudi Arabia, and include rare earth minerals that are important for sectors like defense, robotics, and electronics.
Pakistan has also recently formed a crypto council and held talks with US officials to attract investment and partnerships.
Rumi described the Munir-Trump meeting as “historical.”
“The US wants Pakistan’s help in de-risking regional volatility without offering much in return. Munir believes that this is an opportunity to reaffirm relevance and possibly negotiate maneuvering space at home.
Transactional ties and democratic costs
Pakistan’s ties to the US have historically been largely transactional, particularly in terms of security. US aid and investment often followed Pakistan’s alignment with US strategic goals, helping build its infrastructure and military.
However, there has also been distrust in the relationship, with US administrations accusing Pakistan of being a victim of double-dealing while Pakistan claims that the US has abandoned its efforts to support them despite their best efforts.
Whether this latest engagement proves to be another fleeting phase or a more durable alignment remains to be seen, say experts.
The US has historically engaged Pakistan when it was necessary and retreated when necessary, according to Rumi, a professor from New York.
“Unless this relationship is institutionalised, beyond the security lens with which it is viewed, it’s another tactical romance. It may fade once strategic objectives are met or regimes change, he said, like previous quirks did.
Ansar added that Pakistan again stands on the brink of a major strategic choice amid the global power shift.
“Much depends on whether it leans toward China or the US,” he said. That decision is also tied to the evolving Israel-Palestine conflict and the role of Iran”, he said.
However, Weinbaum, a former State Department official, claimed that “nothing in this administration is permanent.”
“If Pakistan does play some role in the Iran crisis, they have could have more substantial meaning to these ties. However, it is necessary to be aware that this administration hasn’t yet resolved anything. It can change on a dime, at any hour”, he said.
Behind the scenes power
The military remains Pakistan’s most powerful institution, exerting enormous influence over politics and society.
The current government, elected in a contentious election last year, is widely regarded as second to Munir’s military leadership and has been in power for more than three decades.
Pakistan’s military leader General Pervez Musharraf maintained close ties with the United States under the Bush administration during the US invasion of Afghanistan after the 9/11 attacks in the US]File photo: Jim Young/Reuters]
This is in line with historical precedent. Pakistan’s first military ruler, Field Marshal Ayub Khan, had close ties with the US in the 1960s. Strong US ties were maintained by later military rulers, including General Pervez Musharraf in the 1980s and General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq in the 1980s. All three were hosted by US presidents at the White House – but only after they became heads of state.
According to experts, Munir, who is only the second Pakistani to hold the position of field marshal in the country after Khan, reinforces the notion that Pakistan’s true power stillresides with the military despite the existence of a civilian government.
Still, CUNY’s Rumi said it was important not to “confuse symbolism with transformation”.
Anyone who supports democratic consolidation should be concerned that “this]Trump-Munir] meeting validates the enduring military-to-military track in US-Pakistan [ties].” If this is the” reset, “it’s one where khaki once again trumps ballot”, he cautioned, referring to the colour of the military’s uniform.
According to Ansar from PoliTact, the meeting negatively affects Pakistan’s civil-military balance because it revealed who continues to be the “real power bearer” in the country.
“In the long run, these dealings in the past have led to tremendous political, economic and security-related repercussions for the nation]Pakistan]”, he said.
